Letting the Cat out of the Bag
by McAbbyAddict
Summary: An expansion of the back story between Abby and McGee in the fourth season episode, 'Witch Hunt'. Oneshot, complete. Spoilers for 'Witch Hunt'. Pure fluff.


**Author's Note: This was written in an attempt to work out some of the kinks. After 3 months of writing absolutely nothing, I've been very rusty and I've found it very difficult to tackle any of my WIPs. **

**Anyway, this is set in the fourth season episode, 'Witch Hunt'. McGee's reaction to Abby's Hallowe'en costume has always amused me. Hope you enjoy it. F.**

**Thanks goes to Trina109 for her encouragement and her invaluable beta services.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, etc.**

Abby knew he'd been checking her out- she'd called him on it. But he'd been unable to tear his eyes off her, and she hadn't seemed to mind, not really. Even her comment about him undressing her with his eyes had been lightly said.

Now it was getting late. They'd pulled their usual shift before this case had come in, and now it was fast approaching a full 24 hours on the job. It wasn't surprising that his self control had started to slip a little.

Without realising it, he'd been watching her without keeping his usual tight control on his feelings for the brilliant forensic scientist. It was rare that he let those feelings out of their box; but tonight she looked so beautiful, so desirable, that he just couldn't help himself. That dress... Her normal outfits were cute. Unconventional. Quintessential Abby. But the Marilyn costume was something else. It had taken his breath away, leaving him tongue-tied. And he knew that the memory of her in that dress was going to haunt his dreams tonight.

Suddenly she turned away from the plasma and faced him. Quickly he schooled his expression, ducking his head and appearing to concentrate on his work again.

...

She'd known the costume would make an impact. It was so totally different to anything she'd normally wear. She hadn't planned on wearing it to work, but working for NCIS was unpredictable like that.

McGee was watching her again. She could feel his eyes on her. What was with him tonight? He'd barely taken his eyes off her since she got here. At least with him it wasn't a creepy kind of watching. She'd caught more than a couple of guys at the Hallowe'en party frankly ogling her. She didn't like that kind of look- it made her feel slimy somehow. McGee wasn't like that. But even so, it was starting to get old.

She turned, intending to tell him to get back to work- they had a kidnapped kid to find, after all- and caught him by surprise.

The look of love and longing on his face overwhelmed her a little with its intensity, leaving her slightly breathless before he dropped his head, turning his attention back to the computer in front of him.

In an instant she was beside him. She reached out and touched the back of his hand lightly where it lay on the mouse.

"Timmy... Why didn't you tell me?"

"How, Abs? 'Here's the evidence from our latest case, and by the way I'm madly in love with you?'" He gave a mirthless laugh. "And anyway, you made it very clear that you just want to be friends."

She hadn't expected such an open avowal. Recovering her voice, she said the first thing that came to mind

"But what about the cheerleader?"

His shoulders sagged and he looked away from her. "Sometimes, I just- need to spend time with someone who wants to be with me." It was said in a near-whisper, and the pain in his voice tore at her heart.

"Tim... I'm so sorry."

He shook his head, giving her a sad smile. "It's not your fault, Abs. You can't help the way you feel, any more than I can. Just- just forget I said anything, okay?" He stood up. "I gotta get this stuff up to Gibbs."

He was gone before she could react, leaving her standing alone in the middle of the lab.

...

Furious with himself, McGee strode out of Abby's lab and into the elevator.

He'd managed to keep his feelings for Abby at least mostly secret for two years. Two years. He'd buried them as deeply as he could, reasoning that having her as a friend was at least better than nothing. And now... Now he wouldn't even have that. And all because he'd allowed himself to watch her. He'd allowed himself to dream. The worst part was, he couldn't think of a single thing he could do or say to reclaim their friendship. He'd laid it all on the line and there was no going back from that.

Reaching out, he flipped the emergency switch on the elevator. He needed a moment to regain his composure before rejoining the rest of the team. With a child kidnapped and her mother missing, Gibbs would have his head if he wasn't on the ball.

...

After Abby had finished trick-or-treating with Sarah around the desks in the squad room, she went back down to the lab and slowly started the process of shutting things down. Gibbs had told her and the team to go home and get some rest after their 24 hour stint. They weren't due back in until the following day.

So now she had at least a day to figure out what to do about McGee's startling revelation.

She thought back to their earlier scene in her lab. She'd never realised just how strongly McGee felt about her. She'd known, of course, that he was reluctant to end the romantic part of their relationship when he'd first joined Gibbs' team, but she thought he'd been happy that they'd remained such good friends- as she had been.

But now she wasn't so sure. When he'd told her he loved her, the edge of bitterness and pain in his voice had been faint, but audible. Had he loved her two years ago? How blind had she been? How had she not realised how much she'd been hurting her best friend?

And how had she not realised how much he meant to her?

When they'd stopped dating, she'd had no way of knowing that Tim would quickly go from being another ex-boyfriend to friend, and to best friend. She didn't want to lose that, but she just didn't know how they could stay friends after this. It would be too awkward.

She slumped down at her desk, feeling incredibly depressed. The thought of losing McGee as anything but just another colleague was just heartbreaking. The look on his face as he declared his love for her flashed through her mind's eye again, and for the first time she admitted to herself that it sent a thrill through her.

Where did this leave them? A line had been crossed; they couldn't go back to just friends now. She sighed. It was time she stopped fooling herself. She'd been running scared for two years. Timothy McGee was more than just her best friend.

And it was up to her to do something about it. Picking up her things, she left the lab.

...

McGee waited until Tony and Ziva had been gone for a few minutes before swinging his pack to his shoulder and leaving the squad room. The last thing he needed right now was an interrogation from DiNozzo. It had been a day with too many hours spent at work and too much to think about.

Head down, he made his way slowly to the parking lot, trying not to think- obsess- about Abby and what he'd done to their friendship. Fumbling for his keys, he looked up to see a figure standing next to his car. Abby. He felt the lift of heart he always got every time he saw her even as he wished she'd gone home and left him alone today.

He stopped a few feet from where she was leaning against his brand-new Porsche.

"What do you want, Abs?" He tried to keep any hint of irritation out of his voice. It had been a very long, strange day and he really didn't have the energy to deal with the consequences of their earlier conversation. The only thing he wanted to do right now was go home and go to bed.

She was biting at her lower lip in the little nervous habit she had and he cursed himself inwardly. The last thing he'd wanted to do was make her uncomfortable around him.

"I was thinking. About earlier" she said abruptly. "What if I don't want to forget what you said? What if I said I wanted to-to try again?"

Hope flared inside him. Instinctively he took a step towards her, wanting so badly to take her into his arms. But... a thought occurred to him, and he knew he was going to hate himself for this later. He stopped.

"Why, Abs?"

"What?" She blinked at him in surprise.

"Why now, Abby? Why out of the blue like this, after two years?" He sighed. "Look, you know how I feel about you. But if we do this again, I need to know that it's because it's what you want. I need to know that you want to be with me." When she didn't reply, his shoulders sagged. Turning his face away so she couldn't see how much he was hurting, he swallowed, trying to get his voice under control before he spoke.

"It's been a long night, Abby. I just want to go home."

He took a step towards the car, hoping she'd take the hint and let him leave. Instead she reached out and laid her hand on his sleeve.

"Tim, wait."

He stilled, looking down at her.

"I-I don't know that I feel the same way you do, Tim. But I do know that I want to give this-us-a chance."

He moved then, pulling her into his arms, revelling in the feel of her as she wrapped her arms around his waist. They stood like that for a long moment before she pulled away slightly, tilting her head back to look up at him.

"I'm not good at relationships, Tim" she warned him. He grinned at her.

"Abs, the longest relationship I've had was with you, and I'm pretty sure that was only because I lived 200 miles away. We'll work it out."

Then he dipped his head and kissed her, the way he'd been dreaming of for two years.


End file.
